Help for parents financially impacted by COVID
The Moriah Foundation is launching The Moriah Response 2020 – No family left behind campaign to support families whose ability to afford school fee payments has been impacted by COVID-19.
Rabbi Yehoshua Smukler
“We are facing a situation at the school that we have never seen before,” says Moriah College Principal Rabbi Yehoshua Smukler. “Over the past few months, we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of families reaching out to the College for financial assistance.”
The Moriah Foundation President, Judy Lowy explained that since the pandemic began, the priority of the Foundation has been to support the College and ensure that Moriah parents will not have to remove their children from the school due to financial hardship caused by COVID. “Many of our Moriah families are struggling to pay school fees right now as they have lost their jobs or income, or seen their businesses decimated. Many of these families have contacted the College to seek help for the very first time, as they find themselves in situations that they never imagined. We want to do all we can to assist these families until they are able to get back on their feet and resume their normal fee payments.”
Judy Lowy
The College estimates it will require $5-7.5M to support 200-300 children whose families have been impacted by COVID-19. This is in addition to the $5M scheduled debt repayment due in December 2020, funding which was planned as part of a Capital Appeal that has now been postponed.
To date, with the generous support of the JCA and several donors, The Foundation has raised nearly $5M of the $10-12.5M target.
Thanking the community for its support to date, Judy Lowy is calling on community members to assist families during this difficult time. “We, here in Sydney, have been very fortunate that most people have been able to get back to work. But so many have not, and so many have lost a substantial proportion of their incomes. Our aim is to help keep children at Moriah, where they belong. Uprooting children to move schools during these already challenging times would be heartbreaking for the children and their families, as well as a great loss to Moriah. We hope that every member of our extended family will support the campaign to the extent that they can. The College, the families, and most importantly the children we help during this difficult period deserve our support.”
If you are in a position to donate to this important campaign, please contact Andy Berelowitz, Foundation Manager on 9375 1620 [email protected] or visit www.moriahfoundation.org.au/donate.
